A data network routes network traffic in the form of data packets to and from destination devices. The data network typically includes many network devices or nodes connected to each over network links. A network controller controls the nodes over a control plane using control plane Operations, Administration, and Maintenance (OAM) messages in order to reconfigure the network links in the event of link failures/breakages. If connectivity with the network controller is lost, the capability to respond to such link failures is also lost. Even if connectivity is not lost, control plane OAM messages used to reconfigure the nodes and network links often take an inordinate amount of time to travel between the network controller and any target node because the target node may be located deep inside a topology of the data network. This causes unacceptably long reconfiguration delays in the event of link failures.